Prepare to Pivot: being flexible in times of crisis by Mechel Wall

Learn from Mechel Wall (CEO of two Arkansas-based businesses: Wall Flower Farm and Cottage Flower Shop ) about "Preparing to Pivot" and being flexible in times of crisis. She attended BYU Hawaii and Provo without graduating. She learned, however, that being aware of her strengths allowed her to leverage them. It also guided her to surrounding herself with (and learn from) people who were smarter than she was in different areas. While Mechel didn't intend to start multiple businesses, her awareness of needs in the market and her own self-awareness enabled her to found businesses that proved to be covid-proof during the crisis. 

More about Mechel

"After an unfortunate encounter with a steer that left me bruised from stem to stern, I decided that farming for me would be working with something that couldn't hurt me. So I turned to flowers and I haven't turned back. With a focus on cut flowers, my market was other flower shops and farmers markets. I quickly realized that retail would bring the most revenue per stem so I opened a flower shop which is now located at the farm. My husband who is a company executive frequently gets his hands, boots and jeans dirty in the evenings and on weekends helping me with my endless list of projects. Together we have 8 children and 12 grandchildren and live in NW Arkansas.

I attended BYU Hawaii and BYU Provo but didn't graduate (hello Pathway). We moved to Arkansas in 1994 and in 1999 with 6 children I founded a nonprofit organization and started the first charter school in Arkansas: Benton County School of the Arts. I learned that surrounding myself with people smarter than I was the best way to learn what I didn't know. Together with a brilliant and hard working board we forged a community base of parents and leaders that remain friends still after 20 years. Arkansas Arts Academy (renamed to broaden base) serves K-12 and has several years worth of students on waiting lists. After my 12 years of volunteer service as president of the BCCSO I began writing a fictional novel from the perspective of the Nephite women in the Book of Mormon and published the first novel in 2018 through Cedar Fort. The second book, first draft, is nearly done (life happens). We became empty nesters for the first time this year as our youngest went to BYU in spite of covid and our second youngest returns from his mission in Norway next week - he was one of the few missions that didn't return home due to covid.

As a lifelong member of the church I've served in ward and stake callings and love the Gospel and the many blessings we have received. Barry and I celebrated 33 years of marriage this year. After being released from the Stake Presidency, Barry is now the EQ President and I'm the Stake Self Reliance Specialist." 

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